


Inked Petals

by littlePhandelion



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Depression, Implied/Referenced Suicide, M/M, Mentions of Cancer, Mentions of attempted suicide, Mentions of self-harm, Smut, Suicidal Thoughts, Tattooist!Dan, florist!Phil
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-14
Updated: 2016-02-06
Packaged: 2018-04-14 17:20:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 14,634
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4573068
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littlePhandelion/pseuds/littlePhandelion
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>{Tattooist!DanxFlorist!Phil}</p><p>Meet Phil Lester, a florist who is in love with pastel, has a fear of needles/gages, and is just a dork overall. </p><p>Now look at Dan Howell. A tattooist who is tatted up himself, sticks to the grayscale, and smokes a bit too much. Not really anything like Phil. </p><p>When Dan has to move his tattoo parlor right next from Phil's florist shop, the two can't help but notice each other. </p><p>Will opposites attract? Or will everything go very wrong?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

The sound of an alarm as loud as a ambulance driving right by you was what woke the raven haired man. Groggily, he picked his head up from his pillow and turned to the nightstand, reaching his hand out for his phone.

"Alright, settle down." He mumbled, grasping the light mobile device and bringing it to his face. Lucky for him, he turned the brightness down, meaning he could turn it on without making himself even more blind than he already was. He began to put his code in, turning off the alarm while doing so. Groaning in a so slightly annoyed, tired manner, he put his head back on the pillow and closed his blue eyes again.

The raven haired man stayed like that for what seemed like a lifetime for him, but was actually ten minutes before realization hit him. Today was a Monday. Monday meant weekday. Weekday meant work.

Abruptly, the raven haired man sprung up from his laying position, deciding that what he did was terrible a second too late. As the blankets fell off the bed, so did he. He hit his floor head first, making a small "oof!" Sound as he did. Sighing heavily, he began to work himself out of the tangled blankets.

Once he was free, he began to sit up, examining his floors. Slowly, he stood, bundling up his blue and green checkered blankets, tossing them on his bed. As he walked out of his room, he made a mental note to make-up his bed before he had to go to bed again.

He began to walk over to his bathroom, which wasn't that far from his bedroom. He opened to door to his bathroom, walking in and flicking on the light. Once he did, he was welcomed with a mirror. Smiling lightly at his reflection, he reached out for a hair brush and began to gain control of his hair. He ran it through the brush a couple times and even had to plug in his straightener and run that through once or twice.

Once he thought his hair was perfect, he began to walk back to his room, thanking himself for getting a shower the night before. Quickly, he made his way into his room and kneeled in front of his drawers. Pulling one open, he began to dig for his outfit for today, making a small sound of joy once he did.

He pulled out a light grey jumper with foxes all over it. Quickly, he stripped down to his boxers and threw on his jumper, finding a pair of a pale, pastel yellow colored pants to go with it. He quickly made his bed up and looked on his nightstand, grabbing his phone and his contacts case.

Making his way to the bathroom again, he hummed a song to himself as he flicked the light back on and walked back up to the mirror. He began to put his contact in, messing up a couple times before getting them in perfectly. A quick fringe check then happened and then he was ready.

Making sure everything was good, he made his way to his door to leave. Once he opened it, the smell of lilies, roses, and an assortment of other flowers hit him and he was happy.

He made his way down the stairs, the smell of fresh flowers getting more clear and suddenly, he was in a shop full of flowers.

Walking all the way down, he smiled as he saw the lavender colored counter. He walked past it, picking up the clipboard laying right by the cash register, examining some nearby roses. A feminine voice made him jump.

"Good morning! I thought you would never wake up."

He turned around, his blue eyes meeting a pair of brown ones. He sighed, smiling as he realized who it was. "Sorry, Heather. I forgot today was a Monday."

"That's quite alright, Phil. I see you went for the foxes, today. That's cute."

"And that dress color goes nice with you. You look lovely!" He turned around, not catching her blush as he walked up to the cash register. He began to count the money inside, taking inventory casually.

Phil Lester can only be described as a kindhearted man who's way too in love with flowers and animals. He wanted to be a vet, but it was too much for him, so he became the next best thing for him: a pastel wearing florist who volunteers at local animal shelters. He had black hair that was really soft, apparently. He also had soft, sky blue eyes that was always full with a warm feeling. He made any bad situation really happy. Everyone that knew Phil was always happy around him.

His assistant, Heather Millen, was one to vouch for that fact. She was a warm person who felt really happy around Phil. Yes, she may have liked him more than usual, but that doesn't mean she was happy with him before she realized that. Heather was a pale girl with long dark brown hair and matching eyes. She stood at 5'6 and wore lots of small dresses. Half because of Phil, half because they were cute.

Together they formed the shop named Posh Petals, a florist shop that sells the freshest flowers in London. They were busy a lot during the spring and summer time.

"So, it's going to be drizzling today, apparently." Heather said as she wrote down something on her clipboard, breaking the silence. Phil gave a small chuckle, and shook his head.

"I wouldn't trust the weather reports."

Chuckling lightly, Heather stayed quiet for a bit before speaking up once again. "Did you hear the news?"

This made Phil perk up. What was going on? Nothing really happened here.

Heather took his curious look as an invitation to speak. "There's competition coming tomorrow."

"Where'd you hear that from?"

"A couple stores down. They say the guy who's the boss is really dark and punk looking. He has gages everywhere and his hair has blue tips. He's rude and scary. I also heard that he does drugs."

Phil widened his eyes. Was someone like that really gonna put his shop next to him?

Heather nodded as if to say, "Yeah, that's what I heard." She spoke up to say, "He runs a tattoo shop."

Phil swallowed.  _Not only is my competition already having rumors, but he's a tattooist too._

 

•••

 

The time was now 7:55. They were done for the day. Phil waved bye to the last customer, smiling lightly as he began to take inventory again.

Heather was humming a song lightly as she watered the last of the lilies. Her eyes casted over at Phil, staring at him for awhile. She began to fix her hair and pull her dress down. She looked busy as she began to speak. "So, Phil..." She began, looking over at him. "My friends and I were going to a nightclub later on tonight. Would you like to come?"

Phil tensed. It's not like he was scared of night clubs. He didn't like Heather or anything. She was really sweet. It's just that Phil and nightclubs don't mix. He began to look for an excuse, coming up with just, "I don't think so, Heather. I just need to rest tonight." Cue mental facepalm.

"Oh..." Was Heather's reply was.

Phil widened his eyes. He hated it when he disappoints people. "Heather, really, I'm-"

"No, it's fine, Phil, really."

"We'll do something together later, okay? Is just-"

"I said it was fine, so it's fine." Heather spoke over Phil. She turned around quickly, walking over to the exit. She reached up to grab her purse hanging from the coat hanger and opened the door. She didn't say anything as she walked out.

Phil watched as she began to walk farther away from the building, trying to ignore his pesky thoughts. He wasn't rude, was he? Shaking his head, Phil began to walk to staircase to go up to his small home. He flicked off the lights with the switch once he made it. He made his way up the stairs, walking into his small house once he made it.

It took him two hours to get ready to sleep. He took a shower and cleaned up. Once he hopped into his bed, he began to scroll on his phone, wasting time he could've been using to sleep.

Once Phil was completely tired, he checked the time. 11:45. Phil sighed. He wanted to sleep, but he was just so worried about his new competition. If a tattoo shop was going to open up next to him, will the audience around here change? Will there be more smoking teens than there will ladies wearing cute outfits around here? He tried to push the thoughts to the back of his head and just close his eyes. 

He didn't fall asleep until 1:00 in the morning.


	2. Chapter Two

The chocolate haired man gave a smile as he reached his hand out, grasping the red inked needle. He looked at his artwork, chuckling lightly as he drew the red over some lines. One red part here, one red part there. He began to turn off the red one, nodding. "How's that?" He asked.

"That's...beautiful, Dan." A voice spoke softly. A girl with blue hair was looking at her arm in the mirror.

The one she called Dan gave a nod. "I know." He laughed, watching as she stood. "Don't forget to put the creme on it so it doesn't irritate you." He explained, nodding at her.

The girl gave a small smile, nodding. "I think I'm in love with it." She laughed, running her fingers over the design.

Dan nodded. It was usual for people to say that about his artwork. Yes, he was an artist. His pallet was ink needles. His canvases were the costumers that wanted artwork on them. He was a tattooist. A bloody good one at that.

He was part of a huge tattooing industry. The building he worked in was huge and really busy. They ended up extending just a couple weeks ago. People really loved art on their skin. People also really loved how the tattooists looked. Dan was a popular one for both his looks and artwork.

It was hilarious to Dan. Whenever a girl hit on him, one of the co-workers will notice and casually say, "He's to queer to care for you." And it was true. Dan was in fact gay. No one really cared much. If they did, Dan just said, "We're not in the '80s anymore, it's perfectly okay." If they put up an argument, he almost always won.

The blue haired girl smiled, winking at her artist. "Do you paint on canvas?"

Dan shoved his hands in his black skinny jean pockets and did a half assed shrug. "I thought about it a couple times."

"You could make good money off of it." The girl said, reaching into ether silver pocket book. She pulled out a card and handed it to him. "Call her whenever you want to start." With that, she left.

Dan looked at the business card, running his free hand through his hair. He shoved it in his pocket, shaking his head. He wasn't going to take another job. Right now, he was working two. His tattoo one and his piano one.

Things weren't all that well for Dan. Because this industry was so big, he had been asked to move to a building into a small town with two others. He agreed. They all found a small apartment to live in near the town, so he's been saving up a lot. It's been putting a lot of pressure on him. He would have to leave all his friends and start fresh at a small building.

When he heard about the small area he'd be moving to, it didn't make him better. Most of the shops there were antiques and small fashion districts. He was going to move next to a floristry. He hated the thought of that. It's going to be hard for him to find good customers.

"Dan!" A boy walking up to Dan interrupted his thoughts. A dark, lanky man was striding up to the young tattooist. He was smiling as he waved. Dan smiled and waved back.

"Hey, Dave!" He said back, chuckling lightly.

Dave was one of Dan's good friends. He was tan skinned man with a lanky build. He had tons of cute freckles and was just an attractive man overall. Ladies loved his personality and his half-shaved, short blonde curly hair. He had bright hazel eyes to go with it. Overall, he was a popular lad because of his looks, and he was chill with it. Once he was right in front of Dan, he smiled, shoving his hand in his front jean pocket. "Dan, mate, how's it been?"

Dan gave a slight shrug, glancing at his left, completely covered arm before talking. "It's been okay, I guess."

"Don't look so down! Look, I know you're moving areas and all, so I decided on something." Dave smiled, taking his hands out of his pockets and opening them wide. "We'll have a huge party tonight!" Before Dan could say anything, Dave spoke again. "I know it's a bit crazy since you're just moving towns, but think about it Dan: this could be our last night to get hammered together in a long time!" He said, putting emphasis on the "long".

Dan shrugged. "I suppose your right. Okay, it's a deal." Once he decided, Dave began to whoop very loudly, turning around to all the people in the parlor.

"Do you hear that everyone?! My mate, Daniel James Howell, and I are throwing a huge party for him tonight!" Almost everyone in the room began to clap and cheer loudly.

Dan chuckles nervously as he shoved his hands into his pockets. Once Dave turned back around to face him, he spoke again. " I take it that's not all you came in here for?"

"Oh, right," Dave mumbled, glancing around before speaking again. He was half-whispering. "Dan, we need to speak privately," before Dan could ask anything, Dave stood back up and cleared his throat. "But since we're throwing that party now, I'll tell you then! I have to go get ready now! See ya, mate!" He called as he began to turn around and walk off.

Dan scoffed as his friend walks away from the parlor. That was a classic Dave. Comes in for something, leaves with something else.

He turned back around once he heard the sound of Dave walking out. He had to do some art projects that were awaiting him, how lovely.

•••

Dan sighed as he looked at himself in the mirror, fixing his annoying fringe. Once he felt like it was perfect, Dan walked out of his bedroom, sighing lightly. Why did he agree to Dave's idea? He was tired for working so late.

He pulled out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and began to walk out of his small apartment. As he closed the door to leave behind him, he opened the pack and pulled out a fresh cigarette, sticking it in his mouth and putting the box back in his pocket.

He began to walk out of the small apartment complex, pulling out a lighter and lighting up his smoke. He breathed in, put the lighter away, drew his cigarette out of mouth and breathed all the smoke out into the air. The taste of the "stale coffee" as he described it filled his mouth as he kept breathing in and out, in and out.

After repeating what he was doing for a couple more times, Dan was finally out of the shitty complex. Dave was just across the street. Should he back out?

He sighed. It was too late to. He would just have to do in and get drunk and/or high tonight. Dan always did this to himself. He never liked socializing, he was just too kind to back out of things like what Dave plans. Once the busy street was clear for a minute, he ran across, making sure the area around him was clear of people as well. He hated the way he ran.

Sighing, Dan blew out another puff of smoke, beginning to walk further down the pavement. He was humming lightly to himself as he walked alone to his friend's party. Should he even call Dave his friend?

The sound of dance music grew louder as Dan kept walking. He sighed to himself as he blew in the last bit of his smoke. He blew it out quickly, stopping himself at a big, noisy apartment complex. This one was much better than his. Dan three his now dead cigarette onto the ground and walked into the building.

The sound of music grew louder as Dan walked through the complex. Dave's neighbors didn't care about his parties. Well, no one did. Everyone around where Dave lived spent everyday getting high. No one cared about anything around this part.

Dan stopped at the door where it was literally shaking with every sound of the bass dropping. He didn't even knock. He just lit another cigarette and walked in.

The room was dark, but that was okay because there were tons of different colored flashing lights to go with the music. The smell of cheep alcohol, smoke, and pot was strong. Dan never really liked these parties, but it was too late. He looked around for Dave, sighing. Didn't he have something to tell the tattooist? He was too lazy to walk around and try to find his friend, so he was just going to give up and chose a corner to stand in. He found a empty looking one and begin to stride over to it.

"Dan! Dan!" The sound of a slightly drunk Dave made Dan tense up. He immediately relaxed once he turned around, seeing the lad with ladies hooked on his arms. Classic drunk Dave.

Dan gave a small wave, quickly drawing his cigarette out of mouth and puffing the smoke out. His brown eyes met the slightly intoxicated hazel ones before Dave broke the silence between the two. "I thought you weren't coming, mate!" Dave laughed.

Dan shrugged. "Here I am," He spoke nonchalantly over the loud dance music. "What did you want to tell me?"

The blonde haired man laughed lightly, leaning into Dan's face, who tried to back away. "Why don't you stay awhile, Daniel? Have a drink or two. Don't be all about business tonight!"

Dan wrinkled his nose as he put the cigarette back in his mouth. Dave wasn't slightly drunk. He was close to hammered. Perfect. His breath smelled of brandy and an assortment of shots, he called Dan "Daniel" -which no one calls him-, and the look on his eyes completely gave it away.

"Actually," Dan started, staring at the whores on Dave's arms. "That's all I came here for."

Dave was silent for a minute or two. Maybe five. Dan lost count due to the awkward tension. He looked around for a distraction until Dave spoke again. "Right, ok. Dan, have a drink or two. Find me when your drunk, I'll tell you what I've been meaning to." He laughed, turning around. He began to stride off, leaving the tattooist behind.

Dan clenched his fist, watching his friend go further and further into the crowd. He began to follow Dave, wincing as the music grew even louder near the crowd. The smell of smoke attacked his nose. He couldn't tell if it was him by not drawing his cigarette out of his mouth or the other smokers around him. All that he knew was that he now lost Dave. He huffed angrily, finally drawing the cigarette and puffing the held in smoke out.

His eyes kept darting left and right, scanning the crowd for the curly haired lad. Abruptly, something brushed against his back, causing Dan to jump two feet ahead of him. The sound of laughing made him turn around. As soon as he did, weed attacked his nose, causing his eyes to water. He grumbled curses beneath his breath, rubbing his irritated eyes. A girl with vibrant pink hair was in front of him, laughing.

"I'm so sorry, man. I didn't know you were sensitive to people bumping into you." She snorted, stuffing her blunt into her mouth. Dan started at her, backing up.

"Nono, I'm sorry for being in your way." He mumbled, quickly shaking his head. Talking to a pothead won't help him find Dave. He turned his head to the left, about to walk away from the druggie that was talking nonsense now.

The girl seemed to see his movements and stopped talking. The swayed to music of The 1975 as she spoke up again. "Hey, who are you looking for, love?"

Dan turned his head to her, running a Hand through his fringe. "No one."

"A girl?"

"Two. And some guy they're clinging on. It's Dave, the host of this ridiculousness."

"Oh, you're looking for Dave? What an interesting choice you have in men."

"I'm not-" Dan cut himself off, immediately thinking of past boyfriends " Okay, whatever. Do you know where he is or not?"

"I don't even know him." The girl began laughing, handing Dan the almost used up blunt. "Here. It calms you down like crazy, it's pretty rad."

The tattooist shook his head almost immediately. "Weed is dumb. It stinks and I always pass out when I smoke it." He explained, leaving the girl as soon as he did.

•••

It took Dan another hour before he found Dave again. He took a couple shots to drink away his anger, so he was a bit tipsy. Maybe he was hammered. He didn't know.

Dave was in a whole other room, half getting a lap dance, half playing some racing game on his shitty x-box. When Dan walked in, he was kinda disgusted by the girl trying to get Dave's attention. Not saying a word, he just walked over to where Dave was and took a seat on his old couch. He watched the TV, bored within the first five seconds of doing so. The song blasting through the walls slowly faded into a techno song as Dan spoke.

"Stoned or hammered?" He asked Dave, leaning back as his eyes left the screen and locked onto The dancing girl.

"A little bit of both," Dave snorted, dismissing the girl. "What about you?"

Once she stopped dancing, had a short pout, and left the room, the song changed to some trap music and Dan spoke again, "Tipsy. I think."

Dave gave a small nod, pausing his game to look at Dan better. He turned his head, his hazel eyes meeting Dan's brown ones. "Dan, I need to talk to you."

"That's the only reason why I came into your room. By the way, it smells like piss in here." Dan pointed out, running a hand through his hair. "What's wrong, David?"

"Well, Daniel. You have two jobs," Dave started, reaching down to pick at the cheap material of his couch.

"Well, I'm about to move out and go into a small town to help the tattooing company, so I quit my second job just earlier today. Where are you getting at?"

"Well, okay but before you quit, two jobs means two different paychecks. Two different paychecks means you have more money. That means-"

"Dave, it sounds like you're trying to confirm the illuminati on me. Get to the damn point." Dan scoffed out, having an idea of what Dave wanted.

Dave sighed lightly. "I'm three months behind rent, Dan. I need help." He spoke with a slur, but Dan got the idea.

He just sat there, staring at his high, drunk friend who wanted hands on his money for drugs. Dave could give two shits about rent. He sighed quietly, looking away from Dave. "No,"

"...no?"

"I've fallen for the rent trick many times. I need my money this time, Dave. I need you to stop trying to take it from me."

"Dan-" Dave cut himself off, watching as Dan stood to his feet.

"I'm moving out of here, Dave. I'm going to a smaller town. I need that money so I can find a reasonably priced apartment."

"Dan."

"Yeah, I'm going to have leftover money. But that's too but some things for the parlor. I can't just have a cold, bare parlor."

"Dan."

"What?" Dan looked at Dave, who stood up as well, and crossed his arms.

"Please," Dan just realized that the song playing was now a upbeat one by twenty one pilots. He's wasting time if five different songs played. He stared at Dave, who just looked back at him, pleading.

Dan shook his head. "No, I think I'm done with your bullshit. Stop asking me for money." He turned around to walk out of Dave's room.

Dave grabbed his arm, causing Dan to turn around. Once he did, that's when Dave swung. It came to Dan in slow motion, yet too fast for him to avoid and soon there was a pain on his cheek. Dan widened his eyes at Dave. "I never knew I had it in you." He snorted.

And then they were fighting. Dan was not that into it. He thought his first fight would be better than this, but he was just punching a stoned, hammered lad.   Dan almost laughed at the lyrics blasting through the paper thin walls.

 _You fell asleep in my_  
_Car, I drove the whole time_  
_But that's okay I'll just avoid the holes so you sleep fine._

Dan was then pinned to a wall, grimacing at Dave's sharp grip on his shoulders. Also, his breath reeked.

 _I'm driving here I sit_  
_Curing my government_  
_For not using my taxes to fill holes with more cement._

Dan quickly banged his forehead against Dave's, causing the drunk to back up and fall over his own feet. Dan used this moment to run over to the exit of the room. "Don't ask me for money again," he spat at Dave, ignoring the huge migraine he was getting as he walked back out into the party.

He quickly made his way to the exit, humming the same lyrics softly. Once Dan made it to the exit of Dave's apartment. He sighed loudly as he leaned against the closed door. He reached into his pocket for his cigarettes, smiling as he grabbed one from the box. He made a mental note to buy more soon as he lit his fourth one that night.

With a quick inhale, draw out, exhale, put back process, he made his way back home.

As he was walking down the street, he smiled.

No more second job, no more Dave, no more boring life. He got to start fresh as of tomorrow morning. Dan felt fresh and new.

For the first time in his life, Dan felt truly alive.


	3. Chapter Three

Phil woke up before his alarm, which only happened when he was excited or anxious for an event.

And Phil was anxious. Very, very anxious.

Today was the day. Today was the day someone started their tattoo parlor next to his florist shop. He wasn't ready for the competition. Not at all.

His blue eyes gazed his bedroom as he tried to push the image of the newcomer back to his head. Heather's description of him scared Phil half to death.

The florist slid out of his bed, turning on his phone to turn off the alarm for this morning. He yawned as he placed his phone back on his nightstand and slid his glasses on. He began to search through his colorful closet of clothes, making a small sound of joy once he found the one he wanted to wear today.

He took a pair of black jeans and his blue with black hearts button-up and folded them up, carrying them to his bathroom. Once he made it to the dark room, he flicked the light on and locked the door behind him.

His blue eyes met another pair in the mirror and for once in about eight hours, Phil saw what he looked like. He snorted. Messy quiff and tired bags hiding being glasses, nice. He turned around, meeting his shower.

Pushing his shower curtains to the left of him, Phil reached over and turned the handle to the right, causing water from the shower head to come out. He made a surprised sound once he felt the water and yanked his now wet arm back from the shower. Chuckling at himself lightly, he backed up, stripping himself nude.

The chill air hit his body as he took his clothes off, causing him to draw in his breath sharply. He neatly folded up his clothes and placed them on the counter behind him, next to the outfit he chose for the day. He faced his shower once again and stepped in.

The cold water hit phil's hair first, causing him to yelp slightly. He didn't realize the water was that cold. He quickly turned the handle a bit to the right, causing the water to heat up to the temperature Phil wanted. He chuckled at himself as he began to run his hands through his hair.

As Phil was showering, he felt as he was being rushed. Something told him that if he didn't hurry, he would make a bad first impression on the new comer by showing up to work late even though it was only 8:30-ish.

He rushed anyways.

•••

Phil was examining himself in the mirror one last time before he left his little home. He ran his hands through his hair, fixed his shirt, and adjusted his pants countless times only because he wanted to look perfect for the new person. He always felt this anxious when it came to these scenarios.

He walked out of his room, shutting off the light and closing the door. He walked through his hallway, adjusting his shirt here and there. Once he made it to the lounge, he walked over to the door. He turned to his right and grabbed a pair of keys sitting up on a shelf. He quickly walked back to the door and unlocked it, opening it to reveal that wonderful flower smell. He chuckled lightly, closing and locking the door behind him before making his way down the stairs.

Phil smiled once he reached the bottom of the stairs, walking up to the desk. He quickly grabbed a clipboard and flicked the light switch on, examining his beautiful flowers. He began to walk towards the window to the right of the shop. Once he made it there, he pulled open the blinds to reveal the building that was soon going to be full of tattooist next to his shop. Sighing lightly, he imagined what it would be like to see that building full of punk looking people. Almost no one would come for his flowers. Phil was terrified. He might go bankrupt.

The sound of a door unlocking behind him brought him back to reality. Phil quickly turned around to see Heather opening the door. He watched as she hung her purse up in the coat hanged next to the entrance as she was texting someone. "Good morning!" Phil said, causing the brunette to look up from her phone.

"You're up!" Heather said back, smiling lightly. She adjusted her teal dress she was wearing as she quickly slid her phone into her purse. She then walked off to the cash register to quickly take morning inventory.

Phil gave a small grin as he kept opening all the blinds around the small shop. Once he was finished, he began to look at the small roses in the corner he was in. He noticed they were just a little wilting, which made him frown. As he walked over to get the hose, he began to yawn. Heather seemed to notice.

"Did you get any sleep, Phil?"

"I may or may not have woken up at four and sat in the bed until six." Phil chuckled lightly.

Heather only sighed in response. "There's nothing to worry about." She mumbled while watching Phil grab the hose and walk back over to his favorite flowers.

"I'm afraid the audience around here is going to change. We won't make as much. We might go..." Phil trailed off, switching the hose switch to a softer spray.

Heather got the idea. "Phil, there's a lot of people out there who get tons of tattoos, but love nature and animals and cute things." She tried to reassured him.

Phil nodded. "There's also tons of people who get tattoos and thinks murder is cool as well." He mumbled.

This caused Heather to laugh. "Think positive, Phil." She smiled at him, checking her watch. She began to walk over to the door to switch the closed sign to open. Once she did, she walked back over to Phil, who was lightly watering his flowers. Once she was behind him, she put a reassuring hand on his shoulder, smiling at him brightly once he looked down at her.

Phil smiled lightly back, making a small nod of his head. "Right, positive." He mumbled back, turning the hose off. He quickly set it up against the wall and walked back to the cash register.

As soon as he did, the sound of a loud moving truck made him look back up.  _Oh no..._

He knew exactly what is was. He checked the time as fast as he could as the truck stopped to the building next to him, The time was 10:45. They came earlier than he thought, but they were here.

Phil's mind was heavy with thoughts.  _What will he look like? Are they nice? Will i still be able to have my own company?_

He was too worried to notice Heather waving a hand in his face, Once he did, he snapped his head towards her. She was pointing at a customer. As Phil nodded and made his way over to the middle aged blonde, he saw Heather mouth, "Stay positive!"

•••

The time was now close to noon. Phil looked out the window, sighing quietly as he glanced over to see Heather taking care of an American tourist who was really attracted to the forget-me-nots. He smiled as he watched his coworker give the tourist their change back and waved bye politely. Phil was glad he hired her. She always brought a positive light to the place.

He turned his head back to the window, giving all his attention to the building next to him. He frowned lightly. It's been an hour and no one has come to open the shop up yet. As soon as he began to pour about this, Phil rolled his eyes, remembering that it took his about a week to open up his floristry.

Heather seemed to read his thoughts from four feet away. "Give them time, Phil." She giggled out, laughing even more when Phil turned around, his cheeks flaring up.

"I-I know! It's just- I can't wait, honestly." Phil mumbled out the last part, looking at the ground. Impatience was a habit of his.

Heather only snorted. "They'll probably be here tomorrow to scope the place out."

"Right. Tomorrow. To scope the place out."

"And maybe to threaten us to quit."

"And threten us to-wait, what?! Heather," Phil's voice cracked with worry as he turned to the younger lady. "They won't really do that, will they?"

Heather shrugged, smiling glumly. "You never know, Phillip."

Phil shook his head. "They can't, they won't!" The sound of his coworker laughing made him flare up again. He turned to the laughing girl again, shaking his head. "T-this is serious! They could kick us out!"

"Yeah, but they won't. Phil, listen," Heather began, striding over to the raven haired man, "no one can kick us out. We're making excellent money!" She began to reassure him.

"Maybe," Phil mumbled, but he didn't sound too reassured.

Heather gave him a small smile. "Come on, let's ignore that truck and finish the day up, alright?"

Phil was silent, but he went off to assist a customer that just walked in anyways.

•••

The sound of the last customer leaving caused Phil to look up from the cash register. His blue eyes danced around the shop as he watched Heather walk over to quickly flip the sign to "Closed".

"We did good today, Phil!" Heather sang as she grabbed her bag from the coat hanger. She adjusted her dress and walked back over to where Phil was to take inventory.

Phil gave a small smile, nodding. "We did, didn't we?" He asked, chuckling lightly. "You did good today, Heather."

Heather's tan cheeks flared a slight red, "R-really?! Thank you so much, Phil!" She said happily.

Phil chuckled at her changed attitude lightly. She looked down shyly once she caught him. This caused a small silence towards the two until Heather broke it.

"Phil?"

"Heather?"

"Yesterday, you said we could make a time to do something together, so I was thinking about it and...." She trailed off, twisting a strand of her hair in her fingers.

Phil looked at her, oblivious to what she was trying to hint at. "Right. What would you like to do?"

"Maybe we could go out for dinner together next weekend?" She asked him, her brown eyes meeting his blue ones for a split second before she looked away, lowering her voice as she said, "Like, a...date?"

It took Phil a second to process once she said but once she did, he widened his blue orbs slightly. He swallowed.  _How do you tell a really sweet person that you just don't like them?_

Being the people pleaser he is, Phil gave a shaky smile and a nod. "Yes! We'll make plans for next week! It'll be great!"

This answer caused Heather to smile widely. "Nice! It's a date!" WIth that, she quickly wrote down the inventory for the night and headed towards the door.

Phil watched, too shy to speak up. He just waved a bye as she turned around and gave a huge waved. He watched her go from the window, sighing slightly. It was too late to turn back on what he said, He was going to have to deal with that date.

Phil cursed at himself mentally as he began to clean up his shop. He now had two worries: try to let down Heather in a really polite way and whatever came tomorrow.

_Tomorrow..._

That thought scared him the most.


	4. Chapter Four

Wednesday vibes were running through Dan like a bunch of wolves in a pack chasing after their prey. He hated Wednesdays. Not only was it a Wednesday, but it was also the day where he was going to look at the building his parlour was going to be at.

Dan heard that the neighborhood for his parlour wasn't all that big. At all. It was narrow and lead to a dead end, yet lots of people go there anyways to look at the cool shops there.

By cool shops, Dan concluded that the information meant antique shops that no one really has a care for. Only people like the elderly and people who are engaged would go there.

Dan would change that. He would bring people more his type and then the whole area would change, which was just Dan wanted. He hated the thoughts of antique shops and just old people things like that in general.

His thoughts were interrupted by a loud voice. "Dan! Dan! We're here, you lazy muppet! Get up!"

Dan groaned at the man in the passenger seat and opened the door to his right, sliding out of the back of the car. He quickly adjusted his leather jacket and took a cigarette out of his box in his pockets. He walked over to the shorter man standing closer to the building and gestured to his cigarette.

The man seemed to notice what Dan was mentioning and nodded, flipping his hair real quick before taking out a lighter and bringing Dan's smoke alive.

The tattooist quickly drew in breath, took the cigarette out, and blew smoke out into the cloudy sky. He turned to the man, who was lighting up his own smoke, running a hand through his fringe before speaking, "Where's PJ?"

"PJ's...he's uh, he's already in. Said we could have a smoke if we wanted, so we are." The man mumbled tiredly back, looking inside the slightly tinted windows. He tapped his cigarette before putting it in his mouth.

Dan gave a small nod, leaning against the wall of the building behind him, across from his coworker. They sat in silence for awhile.

"How's your morning, Dan?"

"Kinda shitty. And your's, Chris?"

"You look like you got no sleep." Chris said, completely ignoring Dan. "When did you get home from Dave's?"

"Maybe three in the morning...?" It came out as a question. He sighed lightly, turning to his left side. "Speaking of the dick, how does my cheek look?"

Chris gave a smug smile as he walked a bit closer to Dan, inspecting his face. "Like you fell on the pavement. Did you two get into a fight?" He took Dan's silence as a yes. "Oh, how I would've payed to see that!" He began to laugh loudly.

Dan sighed, returning to his cigarette. The two began talking about what the parlour was going to look like, how the weather was going to be, and how weird the place smelled until Chris was done with his cigarette.

"Well, I'm going inside to make sure my love is okay." The older man said, beginning to turn around and walk into the building.

"He's only your love when he actually agrees to one of your dates, Chris..."

"He's just teasing me, Dan." Chris chuckled before leaving Dan alone outside.

Dan examined his surroundings quickly. The lot he was standing in was a perfect place to park their car instead of the side of the road. He made a note to tell PJ this almost useless fact. The area was very glum and boring. Dan was already bored looking at it. He blew the last of his smoke out before dropping his cigarette and stepping on it.

As soon as he did, there was a sharp knocking sound behind him which caused him to jump almost two feet ahead of him. Dan was sure he knocked something down in the process of doing so.

He turned around quickly, getting ready to fight whatever came at him. Once he saw nothing, he squinted through the tinted windows.

Staring back at him we're a pair of blue eyes. Very nice blue eyes. Dan kept staring at them until he focused on who the person actually was.

The person who kept staring at him was a pale man, who was wearing a pastel blue collar top and some black jeans. Dan's brown eyes were examining his face structure and his hair closely, talking all this new appearance in until the man knocked again.

Dan followed the knocking sound to the man's fists, only to see him pointing down. Dan's eyes followed, widening once he realized what his feet have done.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" He mumbled shyly, kneeling down to pick up the knocked over pot of some kind of blue flowers. Once he did, he looked back up, rising to his feet slowly.

He only turned around and walked into the new building once he saw no blue eyes looking back at him in the window.

•••

Dan looked over at the curly haired man talking to Chris. He sighed lightly as he read their lips, not really reading anything. How can anyone read things like lips when they move so fast?

As soon as he looked away, he heard Chris call him over. He stood up from sitting on a stool in the corner. He walked over to the two, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "What's up?" He asked nonchalantly.

Chris smiled brightly. "PJ over here said that if we set up tomorrow and Friday, we can start next Monday! Isn't that great?" He chuckled out lightly.

Dan took that last sentence as "Isn't he great?" Which made him snort. He shook his head lightly. "Yeah, whatever you guys say. That's fine. What can we do right now?"

PJ shrugged. "We can start unboxing things. That'll be a great start plus that'll give us an advantage for tomorrow."

Dan and Chris both nodded, causing them all to depart in different directions to start unboxing things.

Dan smiled at the box he opened. He found needles and colors. He found his pallet. He found his colorful world.

He turned behind him to see Chris opening box after box, not even caring about what was inside.  _Classic Kendal_.  Scoffing lightly, Dan went back to his work.

He dug through the box of needles, his eyes instantly hitting the blue ones. He just stared at them, thinking of that one pair of eyes he saw today.

In that moment, Dan's art school abilities were calling out to him.

Dan wanted to sketch those eyes. He wanted to draw them out on a wall and add every little detail into them. He wanted to drag paint of a beautiful shade of blue over those eyes. He wanted to put it somewhere high, where everyone can see. It would be on the news. He wanted the person who owned those eyes to see his drawing of them. Dan would be known as "The man who fell-

Dan began to gag and cough, which caused PJ and Chris to look over at him, then at each other, then just rush over.

Chris bent down and and began to pat the brown eyed man ok the back. "Dan, you okay, mate?"

"Do you need water?" Was PJ's question.

Dan looked up at the two, eye twitching as he just mumbled,

"That was  _disgustingly_  cliché."

•••

Dan looked down at his wrist to read the time on the cheapest looking watch he's ever seen.

9:45. Dan wanted to go home and sleep.

It was odd for him to feel that way. Dan usually didn't feel tired until 4:00 in the morning. Maybe it was just because he got no sleep the night before and he's been working almost all day. 

Dan looked behind him, letting out an annoyed sigh as he saw PJ and Chris talking to each other quietly. He turned around, facing the two as he walked over to grab his leather jacket.  Once he was close enough to the two, he snorted loudly. "Go get a room, you two." 

PJ perked up, watching Dan make his way towards the doors to leave the parlor. "Oh, Dan. Are you leaving?"

"Yeah, it's late."

"Late? Since when is ten late for Daniel?" Chris snickered, shaking his head. 

"Since now, Christopher. Listen. I'll see you guys tomorrow morning." With that, Dan left the two in the parlor. He began to walk away from the building, stopping to grab a cigarette and a lighter from his pocket. Once he lit his smoking stick, he began to walk again, keeping his eyes on his feet. Stupid move.

Almost immediately, he bumped into another walking body, which caused him to look up. Before he opened his mouth to snap his usual. "Move it." He saw who it was. 

It was the pair of blue eyes he saw earlier today.  _God_ , they were magnificent up close. Dan was speechless as his brown orbs were locked onto the blue ones. 

"Sorry," The sound of the pale man caused him to looked elsewhere. Dan gave a shrug and mumbled a sorry back as he pulled his cigarette out of his mouth, blowing smoke away from their faces. 

The two stayed like that for a while, until Dan realised who it actually was. His own voice caused him to jump. "Oh! Uh, hey. I'm terribly sorry about the flowers today. It was totally an accident. I really didn't mean to. Are they okay?"

"No, there's no need to apologise. They're quite alright, really." Blue Eyes gave a chuckle. 

Dan swore he could feel his cheeks flush just a bit. He was so nice. _Why?_  Before he could embarrass himself, the brunette turned around, nodding. "That's nice. I'm sorry, I'm in a hurry home." He mumbled quietly. Did Blue Eyes even hear what he said? 

Who cares,  _who cares_? He rushed away from the man, shaking his head. 

Why was Dan so nervous? Why did Dan get so embarrassed when Blue Eyes was so nice? Maybe it was because Dan was so used to the rude people he used to live around. Maybe it was something else that he didn't know yet. 

_Who cares?_

Dan was tired. He needed a break. A long break with lots of sleep.

A break he won't get at all.


	5. Chapter Five

Phil leaned against the wall closest to the window which had the view of the new tattoo parlor next to his shop. He looked up at the dark sky, sighing lightly as he began to grow bored.

Heather made him look away from the window. "Phil, they say the new shipment is in."

"This late?" Phil asked, quickly checking his watch on his wrist.

"Yeah, apparently. Do you want me to go down and get it?"

Phil looked at his coworker shaking his head slightly. He hated sending others to do easy tasks like this. "No, it's fine. You go home, I'll go pick them up."

"Phil, it's on the way home. I can just-"

"Heather, really it's fine. Go home and rest." The sound of the girl's keys jangling around as she fished for them meant Phil won. She ran a hand through her hair as she walked up to the front, opening the door.

"I'll see you, Phil."

"Goodnight."

And that was that. Heather was gone for the night. Phil watched her leave, his ears filling up with silence.

Once she was out of his sight, Phil began to walk around his ships, closing the blinds quietly. His blue eyes scanned the room as it kept on getting darker due to know outside street lights peering in.

Once he was done, Phil began to walk towards the door, quickly opening it. He reached over to his right and flicked off the light of the shop and flicked on the outside lights. He closed the door to the shop, looking up at the dark sky as he reached into his back pockets for the shop key. He grabbed it and pulled the small key out, locking the door.

Phil began to turn over to the left of him, walking over to the tattoo parlor. The place where he picked up new flowers was three shops down from him. He could usually walk there, though on rainy days, he preferred to take a taxi.

As Phil began to walk, he was checking his phone, not aware of what was around him. He was updating his Twitter, which was a really stupid update.

In the middle of him laughing at other people's problems, he didn't notice a person walking into him. They soon collided, and Phil stumbled backwards. As soon as he regained his balance, he put his phone away.

He looked up at who he bumped into to say sorry, quickly realizing that it was the man who he scolded for kicking over his flowers. Almost immediately, Phil felt bad. "Sorry," He said, smiling lightly as the brown haired man looked up.

"Yeah, sorry." The man mumbled through a cigarette, which then he took out and blew some of the smoke away.

Phil swallowed. He despised smoking as much as cats despised water. He opened his mouth to say something until his blue eyes caught the other's brown ones. He felt rude for doing so, but he couldn't help but stare.

The two stayed like that for a while until the other one spoke. He jumped a little bit as he began to speak. "Oh! Uh, hey. I'm terribly sorry about the flowers today. It was totally an accident. I really didn't mean to. Are they okay?"

"No, there's no need to apologise. They're quite alright, really." Phil chuckled, using his hand to dismiss the man's apology.

It took him a minute or two but soon the brunette turned around, nodding. "That's nice. I'm sorry, I'm in a hurry home." He mumbled quietly.

Phil watched as he left, opening his mouth to say something, but soon closed it as the man began to leave his sights. He turned around, walking again.

He was going to ask for his name. And if he worked at the tattoo parlor. The man was in a rush though. Phil always had later.

Right?

•••

The sound of a very sharp alarm caused Phil to spring out of his sleeping position. He yawned as he reached over to grab his phone, turning off the alarm.

Phil wanted to sleep. He didn't expect to go to bed so late, but the shipment of flowers had a problem so he had to wait in the building for almost forever last night, causing him to go home at around 1:30 in the morning.

As Phil got up and did his usual morning routine, he thought back to the man last night. He chuckled at how awkward the conversation was.

Once he began to brush his hair, he thought of learning his name today. He was definitely going to do it, no matter what.

Phil got downstairs in the matter of forty-five minutes. He quickly turned on the lights and opened the blinds of his shop, glancing nervously at the front door as he did so. He quickly walked over to the cash register and began to take his morning inventory.

The sound of the door opening caused him to look up.  His blue eyes scanned Heather as she put her purse up on the coat hanger.

"Good morning, Phil! Happy Thursday!"

"Hi, Heather." Phil gave a small wave as he went back to his inventory.

"How are we doing today?"

"Tired, but doing well. And you?"

"I'm okay, just a bit set off from a weird dream I had last night."

"Oh? Would you like to share?"

Bad mistake. Now he couldn't stop Heather talking about something involving spiders and dogs or maybe Chris Hemsworth. Phil couldn't tell due to the fact that he was ignoring her and staring at the door.

That's when it happened. In the middle of Heather talking, someone began to walk by. He was wearing the same black, leather jacket the other guy was. He had his hair. Then again, anyone could really.

Lucky enough for Phil, who was in the middle of trying to figure out if it was him or not, the guy flipped his hair and then ran a finger through the fringe to calm it down. Phil barley saw the face from where he was standing, but he knew it was him.

"So then I decided to-" Phil couldn't help but cut Heather off in the middle of her dream by rushing past her and towards the door. "What the- Phil! Where are you going?"

"It'll just be a minute, Heather! I'm sorry!" Phil said in the process of avoiding flowers to get to the door.

He made it as soon as the man almost passed his shop completely. As soon as Phil grabbed onto the bars, he immediately pushed it opened, feeling the pull of the door when it got pushed or pulled to hard. He winced at the weird, yet tiny sound it made, noting to be more careful in the further.

He turned to his right and ran up to the walking away man. "Excuse me!" He called out.

The one in the leather jacket stopped walking altogether and just slowly turned around, slightly widening his eyes.

Phil gave a small smile as he waved. "Uh, hey! Listen, I'm incredibly sorry for that awkward moment last night."

"Uh, same here. It was my fault, really. I was in such a hurry home and I'm really sorry."

Phil kinda liked his voice. A lot. "Well, it's all good now.  Tell me, what's your name?"

"M-my name?" The man sounded startled, which scared Phil. Did he mess up? He was about to open his mouth to just tell Leather Jacket to forget it.

"It's Dan, I guess." Dan mumbled, looking down at his shoes.

Phil smiled. "Dan..." He repeated to himself quietly, nodding. "Well, I'm Phil!"

Dan looked back up at Phil, giving a slight scoff. "Cute," was all he said.

It took Phil a minute to process what Dan had called his name, but once he did, he could feel his face heat up. "Cute..?"

"Nothing. Hey, listen, I have to go to work now, but don't be afraid to talk to me again. I don't bite."

Phil gave a small chuckle, nodding. "Alright. I'll see you later, then, Dan."

"I'll see you, Phil." Dan quietly said back.

With that, they both departed separate ways. Phil back in his own shop, and Dan into his.

Phil was happy to have learned his name. Honestly, he kinda liked his name.  _Dan_.

Yeah, it suited a guy like him.


	6. Chapter Six

Phil.

Phil.

_Phil._

From the Greek origin Philein, meaning "to love, or Philos, meaning "loving".

God, Dan was a huge nerd for knowing that probably. But he kinda enjoyed Phil's name. He liked the way it sounded when he said it, and it was just great overall.

His thinking was quickly interrupted when he walked up the door to his tattoo parlor. Dan looked around, clearing his throat before walking in.

The sound of the bell chimes warned the other man in the parlor to look up from the desk.

"Oh, Dan!" PJ gave a wave as he set the pencil down and moved from his paperwork to Dan.

"Good morning." Dan mumbled as he took off his leather jacket to hang it up.

"Hardly. This new area really confused me. I was lost until two in the morning! Didn't get to bed 'til around four-thirty. Maybe five."

"That sounds awful." Dan commented, looking behind the curly haired man. "Chris?"

"Is being Chris, I'm afraid. Haven't heard from him. You?"

"Sorry," Dan sighed lightly, shaking his head.

PJ gave a slight snort, as if saying "typical." His green eyes shone with some disappointment as he spoke again. "It's a shame, really. He's such a cool guy, just has a lot of turn-offs."

This caused Dan to look up. "Being late is a turn-off?"

PJ gave Dan this look, giving a somewhat nod.

Dan gave a slight smile, shaking his head. "He likes you. You do know that, right?" He threw a wink at PJ, walking over to the table the man was at earlier.

Pj walked over with him, chuckling. "Oh, please, Howell. He is so easy to figure out."

Dan gave a slight surprised sound, which PJ winked in return. The brown eyes man gave a smirk. "Oh? What are you going to do with this info, then?"

"A man must play hard to get when it comes to his romantic interests."

Dan slightly widened his eyes.  _Chris had a chance with Peej?_ He looked down, shaking his head slightly.

Silence came between the two. Dan was left to think now. PJ's words were getting to him.  _A man must play hard to get._ They...didn't have to play hard to get, right? He never did with his past boyfriends. Is that way they ended in such awkward ways?

His eyes looked over at the window to the right of him. His eyes gazed into the window of the shop next to him. He thought of Phil again. Should he play hard to get for Ph-

_Woah, Howell! Let's not think about Phil in that way! You don't even know the guy! What's his surname? When was he born?_ Dan could feel his heartbeat grow a bit faster.

The sound of the door bells going off caused Dan a break from his thoughts wave of relief.

He looked over, seeing Chris give a small wave.

As PJ began to walk over to the nearly late man, Dan's eyes meet up with the shop next to his again.

_Could he think of Phil like that right now? Should he play hard to get?_

•••

Dan sighed as he looked up from the third work table he was setting up that day. He was tired and hungry and bored.

He needed a smoke.

Dan began to rub the area on his neck that was beginning to get sore from looking down for too long. He began to walk over to the door of the parlor, turning around before he left.

"Hey, Chris!"

The man quickly perked up at his name, turning around from the area he was cleaning up. "What is it?"

"I'm going out for a smoke. I'll be right outside. Tell Peej where I am if I don't get back in time."

Chris gave a half-assed nod. "Right, okay."

With that, Dan walked out, grabbing his jacket before he did.

As he walked to the side of the building, he slid on the jacket, looking up at the sky. The clouds were grey as per usual. Typical London.

Dan made his way to where he was earlier, when he toppled over Phil's flower pot. He pulled out the box of cigarettes, opening it and pulling one out. He put the fresh smoke in his mouth, closing the box and putting it back. He leaned against the wall before digging in his pocket for a lighter. Once he grabbed it, he lit his cigarette, doing his usual breathe in, breathe out routine.

"I've always wondered how that tastes." The slightly familiar voice caused Dan go jump. His brown orbs looked up, noticing Phil across from him.

He stared at the blue eyed man with slightly wide eyes, his mouth opening slightly. "What?" He mumbled, immediately realizing what Phil actually said. "Oh! The cigarette?"

Phil gave a slight nod.

"They taste kinda bad, I guess. You never tried?"

Phil shook his head. "I'm too afraid I'm going to get hooked and then I'll get like, lung cancer or something."

Dan gave a light snort. "They aren't that bad. I think." Now that Phil brought it up, Dan began to think. Was he hooked? How many did this one cigarette make in total?

Phil looked down at his shoes. "Why do you smoke?"

"Stress reliever."

"You're stressed?"

"Well, at the moment, I guess. Maybe. I don't know anymore." Dan mumbled. He looked at his cigarette once he took it out, dropping it on the ground and stepping on it. Maybe he didn't need those for an escape from his stress.

Dan looked up at the sky, noticing how dark it was becoming. He decided to change topics, smiling lightly as he looked back at Phil. "It's going to rain soon, huh?"

Phil gave a nod. "Hopefully not hard."

"I won't be surprised if it is extreme."

Phil chuckled lightly.

The two sat in silence for a bit and for Dan, it was peaceful. It wasn't awkward or anything.

Dan caused the silence to end, standing up from where he was leaning. He gave a small sigh as he turned around. "I'll have to go back in now. I enjoyed talking to you, Phil."

"Really?" Phil mumbled, giving a small smile. "I'll see you later, then."

The sound of Phil shuffling his feet around caused Dan to face the blue eyed man again.  _This is going to be a bad idea._ "Uh, hey, Phil?"

Phil glanced up at Dan from his phone he pulled out, allowing Dan to carry on.

_Stop, Howell. This is going to backfire._ "D-do you know why the sky is so grey right now?"

Phil gave a questioning look at Dan, casting a glance up at the sky. "...because it's going to rain? I don't understand..."

_Dan, stop. Don't say anything. Tell him to forget it._ "It's because all of that beauty went to your eyes."

It took Phil a minute or two, but soon he was widening his eyes. And maybe blushing...? Dan couldn't tell. He swallowed before he opened his mouth again.

_Don't explain it, Howell. Don't exp-_ "I- I was saying that your eyes were-  _are_ beautiful, like the sky when it's clear. You see- it's- ugh, your eyes are great. They're a nice shade. Very pretty."

After Dan was done trying to explain, Phil was laughing. He was  _laughing._ Dan could fill his cheeks heat up with embarrassment as Phil laughed. He turned his head to a side, rubbing his neck. "I ruined that pick-up line. I'm sorry"

"Dan, no. It's fine. That was great. I've only gotten that compliment once or twice. It always gets me."

"Gets you...how?"  _Please don't say because it's stupid. Please don't say because it's stupid._

"It's...cheesy. But cheesy lines are the ones that make me blush." Dan let out a small sigh a relief once Phil explained.

"I should get back to work." Phil mumbled shyly, looking at his phone for the time.

Dan gave a small nod, his brown eyes watching Phil's phone. He got a new idea.  _Dan, stop. You bugged him enough._

"Phil, before you go...might you be able to give me your number? It's just that, you seem like a cool guy and I would love to phone you some time."  _He's going to say no. Just tell him to forget it, Howell._

Phil stayed silent for a minute or two, soon holding his hand out for Dan to hand him his cell. "Sure. I would love to talk to you more than just this anyways." He smiled, a slight blush coming to his cheeks.

Dan had the same color rushing to his face as he reached in his pocket, fishing for his phone. Once he grabbed it, he quickly unlocked it and handed it to Phil.

It took a minute or two, but soon Phil handed Dan's phone back to him. Before Dan could thank him and say goodbye, Phil was already walking back into his shop.

Dan turned around, looking down at his phone.

_Phil Lester._

His name is Phil Lester.  _That's a wonderful name._

Dan saw that something was written in the notes. He scrolled down the contact, reading the note that Phil had typed.

_"By the way, your hair is amazing but I couldn't think of a cheesy pick up line for that, sorry. Text me sometime, okay? <3"_

Dan's face was heating up. He was blushing at a stupid note. A stupid note that had a compliment and a heart in it.

God, Dan was a nerd. A big nerd who  _might_  have a crush on a guy.

This felt like his high school all over again.

 


	7. Chapter Seven

Phil gave a small smile as he walked back into his small shop. He walked over to where the cash register was, smiling at the Heather who was working away.

As his coworker heard his footsteps, she look up, smiling. "Welcome back, Phil!"

"I'm sorry I kinda came in late. I was talking to one of the newcomers who work next door."

"Oh?" Heather was chuckling as she continued. "Was he threatening? He didn't convince you to do anything, right?"

Phil's reply was almost too fast. "Oh, no. He was so nice, and kinda cheesy. He's cute."

"Cute?"

"I- uh. His way of communicating was cute." Phil felt his cheeks heat up as he rested his right hand on his cheek. "He was kind of interesting. And his pick up line was adorable."

"He used a pick up line on you? Did it work?" Heather was interested now. Was that slight jealously in her voice? Maybe. Phil was too oblivious and excited about Dan to even notice.

"He got my number. I'm expecting a text from him soon."

Heather widened her eyes, not saying anything.

"You know those rumors you heard? About the big guy with the blue hair and terrifying look?"

"Is that what he looked like?"

"Not at all! His hair was this nice brown color and it looked very soft. I kinda wanted to feel it. And he wasn't big and scary at all! He said my eyes were pretty. He was just so nice and I really want to talk to him again."

Heather gave a soft laugh, twirling her hair in her finger. "Sounds like you want to be friends with the competition."

"Yeah, I-I guess it does." Phil felt himself blushing again. He was confused at why though. Maybe it was because the way Heather sounded bored? Or was it was because she was calling him out for talking to much about him?

"What did you say his name was?"

"Oh, did I never say his name? I'm sorry, how rude. He said his name was Dan."

Heather gave a nod and quietly went back to her work.

Phil gave a slight sigh, calming himself down from all that excitement. He checked his phone constantly as he went back to work, expecting some sort of text from Dan or something.

Suddenly, Phil widened his eyes. He began to bite his lip nervously. That note he typed to Dan. Was it too creepy to put that heart there? What if Dan thinks he's a weird creeper now?

He gave a sigh as he slid his phone back into his pocket for about the fortieth time. He heard his name being called by Heather as he put his phone up. Sighing heavily with worry, Phil went off to work.

•••

It wasn't until around eight when Phil heard his phone go off. He wanted to drop the bag of fertilizer he was holding onto right then and there and check it. It had to be Dan.

Phil quickly walked over to his favorite area of the small roses, setting the bad of fertilizer down, making it lean on the legs of the table tagged the roses were sitting on.

Bending down slightly, Phil reached in for a cup that was in the bag of fertilizer. Once he grabbed onto it, he dipped it lightly into the substance and carefully took to cup out, shaking excess off the very top. He began to very slowly and carefully poor it all over his favorite flowers.

Once he finished and set the cup back in the bag, Phil sealed it shut and returned it back into the supply room that was hiding under the staircase leading up to his small home.

Quickly scoping the place out, Phil decided that everything was in order and his shop was nice and neat. He quickly pulled out his phone, turning on the screen. He gave a small smile as an unfamiliar number appeared on his screen and a message.

_15 mins ago:_   
_"i didn't get free until just now, sorry hah tell me about yourself."_

Phil quickly unlocked his phone, opening his messages app and quickly replying to Dan.

_"Already wanting to know about me?"_

The emoticon of Dan typing back was quick, and Phil suddenly felt bad. He was so late to reply to Dan's first text and the man was already typing back before a minute even passed.

_"you intrigue me, Lester."_

Phil scoffed lightly at his phone. Was he blushing? Yeah, maybe he was.

_"what kind of music do you like?"_ The sound of his phone vibrating made him jump slightly. He looked back down at his phone, reading the recent text from Dan.

His reply was almost too quick _. "I love Muse a little too much for my own good"_

_"dude i love Muse!"_

Phil felt his heart flutter. Dan _loved_ Muse. That's been Phil's favorite band basically since they've even been considered a band. He began to type again.  _"Favorite song?"_

_"i could go on forever about their new Drones album, so"_ Dan's answer was quick and it made Phil laugh a little. He looked back down at his phone, typing once again.

_"Good to know we're not polar opposites"_ He sent, chuckling a little at his own text.

_"lol you're right."_

It was Phil's turn to ask a question. Which one though? He looked around and began to walk towards the window on his left. He shut the blinds with one hand as he typed with his other.  _"What's your surname? I never got it"_

_"Howell"_

_"Like a wolf lol"_ Cue mental face palm.  _Phil, that was dumb of you to say_. He though to himself.

_"haha yeah like a wolf except it's spelt cooler."_

Phil gave a slight snort as he read the text. He tapped on the contact settings and quickly typed in Dan's name.

_Dan Howell._ It had a lovely ring to it. Phil smiled to himself, feeling like the world's biggest dork.

Suddenly, he got a text from Dan.

_"so...you send selfies? ;)"_

Phil kinda widened his eyes at the wink-y face. Is Dan a-

_"i don't mean it to sound like that. im not a fuckboi i promise. i just want a contact photo lol"_

Cue relieved sigh from Phil. He walked over to where the lights to his shop was, and flicked them off quietly. As he made his way upstairs to his small home, he began to type back.

_"Kay good, because I saw that text and began to grow slightly concerned lol."_ He sent along with  _"I'll send you that selfie in a second"_  right after.

_"nice, let me also find my lighting."_

Phil chuckled and slid his phone in his pocket, grabbing his keys from the same one and unlocking his door.

He walked in, closing the door behind him and tossing his keys on his white coffee table, sighing as he pulled out his phone and walked to his room.

Once he reached the room in the back, Phil slid off his shoes and sat on his bed. He unlocked his phone and opened the camera app, wondering how he should take this picture. Yeah, it wasn't a big deal, but Phil really didn't want to send an ugly photo.

He quickly leaned against his bed frame, lifting his phone up to the air a couple feet in front of him. A couple seconds later and he snapped his first photo.

_Gross._

°°°

It took his a good five minutes, but soon Phil found a photo he liked.

He was deciding to put a filter on it or not, soon snorting at himself in annoyance.  _Dan wouldn't want a filtered photo of me, I'm sure._ He thought to himself.

He quickly went to his messaging app and went to the texts of him and Dan. Once his keyboard opened up, he quickly typed,  _"okay I got one! Sorry for the wait!"_

He sent the selfie of himself, locking his phone and standing up, beginning to undress into his pajamas.

Halfway through taking his pants off, he received a text. The sound scared him, causing him to trip over the half pulled down jeans.

Sighing lightly at himself, Phil slid his pants off and stood up, grabbing his phone from the nightstand and crashing back on the bed. He quickly unlocked it, reading the texts from Dan.

_"wow"_ Was sent a minute ago along with a,  _"i want to call you cute, but i dont want to come off as creepy lol"_

Phil blushed at the text. Dan thought he was cute. He shook his head from thoughts and began to text back.  _"Not creepy at all! That was very sweet of you."_ He sent with a quick,  _"Your turn!"_

He went back to throwing his pajamas on, grabbing the clothes he wore for the day and walking over to a hamper pile, dumping them in. He also made a quick note to take care of the growing pile soon.

Walking back over to his bed, Phil lay down on it once again, grabbing his phone and actually getting under the covers. Ad he turned his phone screen in again, he turned off his lamp and snuggled up, unlocking his phone.

Dan sent a picture and Phil gave a light smile, opening it.

He saw that Dan had a full covered sleeve on his right arm, the designs full of roses and birds and maybe hearts? Phil couldn't tell from the photo, but he thought if suited Dan well. Dan also had gauges, which personally scared Phil. Not that Dan looked bad or anything, it's just how could he stretch them? Dan also had a nose ring and a stud above his upper lip. Also, the front of his fringe was a red He must've had it dyed earlier today when Phil wasn't talking to him.

Usually Phil doesn't dig these kind of people. He would feel too threatened to talk to them. But Dan was different for some reason.

_"I like the way you look."_ Phil texted, soon wondering if that was too creepy to ask.

_"you look cuter tho haha"_

With that quick response, Phil's face flared up. He didn't answer Dan right away just to put his photo as his contact photo. Once he did, he returned to the text.

_"I'm totally not blushing."_

_"its nice to know that you enjoy my compliments"_

Phil gave a chuckle, looking at the time. It was getting pretty late for him, so he decided to text Dan with,  _"I might go to sleep soon"_

_"same. its late and i have work tomorrow haha"_

_"I guess I'll text you when I wake up?"_

_"i wouldnt mind that"_

Phil smiled lightly.  _"Alright. I'll talk to you later, Howell."_

_"see you, Lester."_

And although they texted their good nights to each other, they kept texting each other.

Phil didn't go to sleep until three in the morning.

 


	8. Chapter Eight

Dan woke up with a headache.

Did he get drunk last night?

No. Dan hasn't had a drink since he got to this new apartment. He just never had the time to go check out the clubs.

_The time or the person?_

Dan shook his head, groaning into his hands. He slid out from his monochrome bed, grabbing his phone from under his pillow before he completely got up.

Quickly turning his phone on, he saw that he had an unread text. Several, actually.

_3:45 AM_   
_"Phil: Did you pass out on me?"_

_3:48 AM_   
_"Phil: I'll take that as a yes haha."_

_7:30 AM_   
_"Phil: Good morning, Howell!"_

_10:47 AM_   
_"Peej: I thought you were coming early today. ..."_

_10:48 AM_   
_"Chris: Peej's gettin rlly mad lol"_   
_"Chris:Guess I'm the only one here to calm him down"_

_11:03 AM_   
_"Chris: ;)"_

Dan unlocked his phone and began to reply back to Phil. " _this is like four hrs late, but hey"_ then he went to Pj's messages.

" _I thought you were coming early today. Come on, Howell, stop getting drunk."_

Snorting, Dan typed back. " _calm down we don't even open up until noon ill be there in sec damn"_

He hit sent and went to Chris' messages. " _oh god dont tell me you did anything"_ After hitting send, he read over the texts and saw the time jump, eyes twitching. _"you didnt...right?"_

After sending Chris that text and becoming a little concerned that his coworkers might have had a little 'fun', Dan went off to go get dressed.

He stopped by the mirror, looking at himself and slightly hating how he looked. He just got the front part of his fringe dyed a red color, and that was pretty cool, but he looked tired. Physically and mentally. He sighed and just played with his fringe until it looked nice enough and began to grab the first black shirt he saw. It was plain, which was okay, but Dan low-key wanted his "Yeezus" shirt. He shrugged to himself. He'll dig it out another day. He quickly opened up a drawer and leaned down, grabbing a pair of black jeans.

Dan began to put his outfit on, hearing his phone buzz once. Twice. Three times. He grumbled something, sliding his head through his shirt before walking over and seeing what it was about.

_"Chris: i dunno"_   
_"Chris: take your time by the way"_   
_"Chris: i wouldnt mind a round two ;)"_

Dan felt his eyes twitch at the last text. He looked straight ahead, wide-eyed. Did Chris and PJ...?

He felt his phone vibrate again, causing him to look back at his phone.

" _Phil: I stopped by your parlor earlier and you weren't there. I..."_

Dan locked his phone, mentally noting to finish reading that text later. He stood from his bed, sliding his phone in his back pocket before heading out of his messy room.

He walked up to his lounge, sighing slightly as he grabbed his leather jacket hanging on a couch and some band lanyard with keys on it. He put the jacket on and slid the lanyard over his head, walking to his door.

He opened it, sliding his phone out of his pocket with one hand while walking out and pulling the door closed behind him with his other hand. Once it closed, his dropped his hand, reaching for a key on his lanyard.

Once he reached out and locked the door, he dropped the lanyard, walking away once it hit his chest. He began to walk down the shabby apartment stairs, looking down at his phone. He unlocked it, looking at Phil's full text.

_"I stopped by your parlor earlier and you weren't there. I met your coworkers. They seem like a cute couple."_

That's when Dan stopped dead in his tracks. That was all he needed before mentally screaming.

_PJ and Chris had sex in the workplace._

_•••_

Dan quickly opened the door to the parlor, staring at the two men in front of him.

PJ didn't look anymore happier than Dan did. He turned around as his coworker put his jacket up, looking at the clock. Once Dan's footsteps got closer, he spun back around, frowning.

"You're late." He spoke with the stern 'mom voice' as Chris put it one time.

Dan totally ignored him. He kept walking over. Once he was in front of the desk PJ was behind, he slammed his hands down. "You guys _fucked?!"_

Almost immediately, PJ felt his face heat up. His angry expression dropped to a clueless one. He turned to Chris, raising his eyebrows. "You _told_ him?!"

"No!" Chris said immediately. "Well- I mean, I hinted at it!"

Dan hung his head, scoffing, clearly irritated. "I mean I knew it would happen soon, but in the _new parlor?!_ Come on, you can have better common sense than that!"

Chris gave a sly grin, nudging the curly haired man. "Yeah, Peej. Have some common sense!"

PJ groaned, clearly irritated with this conversation. "We didn't even fuck!" He started, turning around to rant. "I was angry and Chris was high!"

"You got high?" Dan interrupted, looking at Chris, who just shrugged.

"I mean, I didn't know what was wrong with him, so I was getting mad at him too for being so slow! Then he started telling me to calm down and next thing you know we were making out!" PJ spoke quickly, not even noticing the door make it's chiming sound, telling them someone came in.

"And it got a little heated! It was only a quick handjob though! We didn't fuck, Howell! We didn't fu-" He spun around while talking, seeing the new face. "Oh...my, god." He whispered, flaring up.

Dan spun around from the whole fiasco, staring at Phil. "Oh. Hey, Phil."

"Uh, was this a bad time to step in?" Phil asked. He was holding a basket in his hands, looking around the parlor nervously.

"Peej was just telling Dan about our handjobs earlier this morning, so I think it's an ok time." Chris chimed in, grinning.

PJ's hands were hiding his face.

Phil's cheeks dusting a pink color. "O-oh my." He chuckled nervously, avoiding Chris' gaze. "Wow, uh, well I was just seeing if Dan is here again."

Dan dug in his pockets, fishing around for a cigarette. He really needed one. "Do you need me for something?"

Phil gestured to the basket of things. "I just wanted to give you guys this. It's like a welcome basket. You know, for like neighbors?"

"Are those flowers from your own little place?" PJ asked, walking to Phil. He took the basket, sniffing the lavender place in there. "They smell amazing!"

Phil's cheeks went back to the pink color. "It's nothing, really. Just some flowers that nobody were really looking at this time of year."

Dan gave him a smile. "They're lovely. Thanks."

Out of nowhere, Chris took the basket and fished out some cookies, grinning. "You bake?"

Phil shook his head, laughing lightly. "My coworker. Her treats are really delightful so I thought it would be nice if she made something for you."

Chris nodded, barely listening. He tore into the package, taking a bite of the baked good. "Are you and this coworker...?"

Phil was confused for a second, quickly widening his eyes. "Oh, no no no! I mean, I don't like her in any sort of way like that!" He mumbled, turning a shade of red.

Chris smirked. "So you're into dudes?"

Phil felt pressured. He gave a shrug holding his hands up in defense. "I mean- I'm into whoever I like! They can be whatever gender they prefer! Love is love and gender shouldn't control that." He quickly explained, clearing his throat.

Dan gave a smile. He liked that whole small speech Phil gave. It really warmed his heart to hear something like that.

Before things got too quiet, Phil cleared his throat again. "I'm gonna go. I bet Heather needs me." He said, walking towards the door. He waved as he opened the door. "I'll see all of you later!" He called, walking out and back to his shop. Dan watched him leave, throwing a glance at Chris, who grinned in return.

"Nice. I like him," The older man mumbled, looking at PJ real quick before speaking again. "He's a keeper, Howell."

Dan jumped slightly. "What?" He spoke, shaking his head. "Shut up, Kendall." He chuckled, finally finding the box of cigarettes stuck in his back pockets.

Before he grabbed them out, he thought for a second. Somehow he didn't want to. He wanted to not smoke ever since those pretty pair of blue eyes told him that he hated smoking.

Dan shook his head, grabbing the pack and sliding it out of his pocket. "Hey, Peej, Chris. I'm going out for a smoke." He spoke flatly, walking towards the doors. Before he opened them, he closed his eyes, turning around for a second. "And please, I'm begging you, _please_ , don't fuck on the counter." And with that, he walked out.

•••

They day went on like normal after that. Dan helped finish up the setup for the shop and bickered amongst Chris and PJ like normal and basically it was all good.

They ended up all leaving around 8:00-ish, meaning Dan still had a while before he was actually tired. He decided maybe to check up on Phil.

He walked out of the parlor last, making sure all the lights were off and the door was locked before making his way next door to the small, cute flower shop.


End file.
